Intuitiveness

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈtjuːɪtɪvnəs/

Definitions

1. The ability to understand or perceive something instinctively without the need for analytical reasoning or prior knowledge is known as a certain quality
2. The characteristic of grasping ideas or truth immediately without conscious reasoning
3. The feature of perceiving or comprehending something in a natural or instinctive way

Etymology: "Intuitiveness" is a plain English compound: the adjective "intuitive" with the suffix "-ness," which turns a quality word into a noun naming that quality. The adjective itself comes from Medieval Latin "intuitivus," built on "intuitus," the past participle of Latin "intueri," meaning "to look at, gaze upon, consider." That verb joins "in-" ("into, upon") with "tueri" ("to look at, watch over"), so the root idea is looking steadily at something. The route into English ran through Middle French "intuitif," which passed the sense of direct, unmediated looking into the vocabulary of knowing. "Intuitive" came into English as the adjective for knowledge gained directly, without reasoning, and "intuitiveness" follows from it by the ordinary English pattern of adding "-ness" to adjectives. The noun's suffix has ancient roots in Old English "-nes," but the word itself is a straightforward modern formation on the adjective.

Synonyms: instinctiveness, perceptiveness

Antonyms: rationality